Report for Riu Hotels and Resorts

Project: Assessment of Riu the sustainable potential that they

are capable of offering.

Submitted by: Sustainable Solutions Womens Association

(SSWA), 2006

December 5, 2006
Table of Contents:
1.0 Summary3
1.1 Background3
1.2 Purpose..3
1.3 Goals4
1.4 Objectives4
2.0 Timeline for the Project.4 & 5
3.0 Budget.5
3.1 Breakdown of Budget6
4.0 Functional Management Aspects.6-9
4.1 Human Resources.6
4.2 Marketing7
4.3 Operations and Strategies.7
4.4 Finance8
4.5 Law...8
4.6 Ethics..8 & 9
4.7 Information and Communication9
5.0 References.10-12

Summary: Sustainable Solutions is a student created company working towards the

efficient improvement of sustainable tourism destinations. We currently majoring in
Tourism and its Environment as well as a Geography major with a focus on planning and
development and want to get involved in fieldwork. We are the future and do not want to
see the quality of the environment in major tourism destinations be depleted. Being a
student marketing and consultation group, we have new ideas and a fresh way of thinking
in terms of making tourism destinations sustainable. As tourism evolves and
environmentally conscience travel increases we have developed innovative marketing
and operations strategies.
Background: Tourism is the biggest industry in the world. There is substantial room for
improvement with the internal processes of tourism operations. Therefore, we want to
provide the Riu hotels with sustainable ideas based on the best practices of the industry
and our innovative ideas. We chose this company because we noticed that there is
potential for improvements of sustainable practices within the operations and strategies of
the company. We are looking at specific best practices that will cover all aspects of
sustainability including social, economic and environmental.
Purpose: The purpose of this project is to organize, plan, implement and assess the
operations of the Rius hotels in terms of their current activities and functional
management aspects of the organization including: human resources, marketing, strategy,
operations, finance, law, ethics, information and communication. Our consultant group
will work to create the highest quality, creative sustainable operations to enhance and

enrich your hotel. We will do this by considering all stakeholders: the employees, the
tourists, the local people, the environment and developers based on a forecasted reality.

In comparison to other consultant groups, this proposal has not been generated to
make you the most money in a short period of time, but rather how to generate profits,
and sustain resources over the long term.
Sustainable solutions is going to work with the Riu hotels to take the steps
towards becoming certified with _________________. This environmental system will
help to generate recurring income, increase the value of the business and secure the
income and value of the business.
-introduce changes to minimize impacts
-voluntary programs to influence change

Goal: To provide sustainable insights to ensure that the environment is preserved, culture
is maintained, employees needs are met, development takes place and emphasis is put on
the social and ecological realm. In result the cutbacks and preservationist methods which
are implemented will make the Riu hotel more sustainable, and save them money in the
long term.
Objectives:
1) To develop long term land use planning implementation strategies.
2) To educate employees in sustainable development and environmental facilitation.
3) To educate employees on services strategies, guide training and incentive programs.
4) To provide tourists with an enriched environment through sustainable methods.

5) To promote environmentally friendly practices internally in the company and

externally to the public.
6) To involve the community as a stakeholder
7) To consider the environment as a stakeholder
8) To provide recommendations for continual improvement and have follow-up
consultations if necessary.
9) To encourage tourist involvement in eco-tourism and other outside activites to
generate money in the local community.

Functional Management Aspects: The main components we will focus on are human
resources, marketing, strategy, operations, finance, law, ethics, information and
communication.
Human Resources:
positive and significant relationship bwtween customers prectipoins of service quality
and their willingness to recommend the company or destinations to others
-deep engagement and focus is critical in fostering creative work
Current practices in functional management:
We grow in care and introduce continuous changes, but there is one thing which does
not change, and which we never plan to change: our service with heart, (Riu Hotels and
Resorts, 2006). Riu Hotel takes pride in their human resources because service is one of
the most important aspects of their hotels. Currently, the Riu Hotels and Resorts are
offering training programs, promotion for employee, language training, re-training and
training managing teams.
Examination of the tourism sector as a whole:
Current Best practices of Sustainability in hotels:
-base best practices on Fairmont which has the most comprehensive environmental
program in the North American hotel industry
-The Fairmont hotel has some of the best sustainable human resource practices in the
industry will be used as a model.

-for certain human resource aspects such as room for growth for employees and the
green team incentive program
Analysis of how operations can be modified to move towards sustainability:
-enhance the services, value, satisfaction level and financial result of their organizations.
-Sustainable solutions is looking to implement innovative strategies and programs to
ensure that the employees are properly trained and educated.
Ways in which we go about these issues: analysis, conceptualization, fact finding,
planning, implementation and evaluation, employees and community involed in a
process of task resolution
-consider employees motives, needs, desires
- To help the Riu Hotels maintain staff loyalty and to get the employees involved we
are going to do this by continuing promotional activities and offering new ones, to
continue working as a team, democracy and offer eco-initiatives for the employees to
participate in.
- -offering ecological training courses for employees and gravel guides
- - also encourage them to do eco-tourism and other outside activities and then it will
be bringing in money to the local community
outdoor and environmental education programs
-consider forms of transportation (encourage tourists and employees to bike rather than
drive everywhere)
in human resources) how service quality is so important, -research on service quality to
keep it up
mention how word of mouth is the most popular way of marketing and therefore we want
amazing service so we will be recommended. (me and you can talk bout this so not too
much overlap)-r
- We also want to ensure that the employees are happy by allowing them to be active
stakeholders in the decision making process.
- (developing ecotourism into a new market segment)
.
- To enable employees and tourists to learn about sustainable tourism through
experiences, to understand how this contributes to conservation and community
development, how this can be developed in each particular region
(accommodate senior market-due to ageing pop- generally healthier, financially better
off, better educated and more interested in novelty, escape, and authentic experiences
than were in previous cohorts of older people
-senior market today is both lucrative and unique because it is less tied to seasonal travel
and involes longer tips and is not wedded to midweek or weekend travel to is can boost
occupancy rates for business and leisure travel opportunities
- -research on service quality and retaining employees
Analysis of benefits and barriers (economic, environmental and social):
Benefits-ethical investing-maximize financial return to maximize social good

-all employees to acquire the knowledge, values, attitudes, commitment and skillse
needed to protect and improve the env. Community and staff morale
-appropriate format will enable guides and staff to perform at the levels to which they
feel most comfortable
-stakeholders have become actively involved in developing concrete solutions t o a
number of env. Issues brough on by the tourism industry
-accountability of mnay different stakeholders including hosts, operators, land mangers
and their value systems
-certification/education of employees, language profiency and follwing of local codes
and customs
Barriers:
-are not able to monitor employees performance at all times
-service is never the same or consistent.
(say how to overcome thissecret shopper ,get feedback from customers on service,
comment box)
-difficult to regulate the movement of people
Recommendation for adoption to sustainable practices (including a timeframe):
-be culturally and ecologically different than other hotels.
Follow the Fairmont - for certain human resource aspects such as room for growth for
employees and the green team incentive program (as described above)
-a four hour worker programme offers people the opportunity to obtain training in
responsible tourism
(volunteer clean up projects and various experience that allow participants to appreciate
nature)
Operations and Strategies:
The Riu hotels runs their daily operations on a precise schedule
according to best practices of the hotel. (Each day millions of steps
are put into action) in order to make each Riu hotel run on a precise
schedule, which has lead to success for the hotel. Although Riu does
strive towards making their hotel more enviomrnetally friendly there are
a few things they can do to make this process more effective. Not only
will slight changes in the hotels daily operations help to save the
hotel money, it will also make the hotel more environmentally
sustainable.

The Riu hotels is largely concerned with cutting costs

which can be done over the long term with an effective environmental
management system. Our consulting team will assist the Riu hotel chain

by implementing strategies that will help preserve the environment and

regulate environmental waste, on a daily basis. The environment needs to
be considered as a stakeholder in the daily operations and strategies
for the Riu company. Without the environment the hotel would not be able
to offer the beauty and ambiance it does for its consumers as the
aesthetic look will degrade over the long term.
Analysis of how to move towards sustainability:
(So many operations instead of listing them all maybe, do by rooms of
the hotel-such as bathroom, restaurant, for a couple at least..i donno
might make it easier, or when there are all the subheadings it might be
easier.)
-This will be done by adding low flush toilets to the hotel rooms, this
will save water and money. (find a source to see how much is saved,
mention putting water bottles of sand in the toilet, save water, cost
nothing)
-water saver (spring loaded tap) will also be put onto the shower +(and
sinks) systems and taps within each hotel room to make sure water is
save at every possible opportunity. ( a 100 litres of water is used for
a 5 minute shower, then when you instal a low flow water head 35 litres
of water is used for 5 minutes). (censor operated sinks, and air dryers
to dry hands over paper towel)
On average 225 litres of water is used during an average laundry cycle.
Therefore a towel policy can be put into action to raise awareness to
guests by signs to leave their towels in the tub if the guest would like
them to be washed or otherwise hang them back up to be reused.
therefore will be less washing done in the hotel. This will not only
save money, it will save water and also save the environment from soap
pollutants. Furthermore, when dealing the harmful residues soaps and
other washing materials may leak into the ocean. Organic and biodrabale

soaps will be implemented for any washing that is done at the hotel,
therefore whatever goes back in the ground will not be harmful.
-A waste management system will also be implemented throughout the hotel
for the cooking staff in the kticken as well as in each room of the
hotel. In each room of the hotel blue recycling boxes and a green box
will be given, 2 for each room, to make sure all that is recycled within
the room can be. Having the recyeling bins within each hotel room will
make it more convenient and encourage guests to recycle and in turn help
reduce the hotels waste. In the kitchen, both recycling bins will in
use as well as compost containers.
-more depth about compost containers, what is done, organic gardening
Another important strategy that needs to be put in place is the
protection of the local coral reefs. The Riu hotels are appealing to a
lot of people because of their accessibility to scuba diving within the
coral reefs. These reefs are being depleted slowly over time and not
only do the guests like them for leisure activities and the aesthetic
appeal, theses reefs are also curtail to the organisms that live within
them. We will help to protect the coral reefs by
(-The Riu hotel is also going to consider how they can make their future
buildings more sustainable. The future development of buildings needs to
take into consideration the environment in a very different view than
the ones that have been built before. The hotel may need to make
themselves smaller or not as fancy, therefore saving the environment
from the harmful chemicals it takes to make certain products they may
normally use in their hotels.These products may only be used for
decoration proposes and with the hotel no longer including them , will
help to make themselves not only a great role model but save them money
and make them more sustainable.)

(This section is really confusing, what products are you referring to,
smaller or not as fancy may not be the answer
consideration of growth strategies and business development in the
future need to be implemented in innovative ways to meet continuing
environmental needs and sustainable strategies. (possible start)
continual assessments
-consider eco hotels
Furthermore, they need to take into consideration eco-hotel that are
geared towards environmentalists and can set an example for other hotels
to follow. These hotels will be built with as much natural resources as
possible and only provide the bear minimum for guests(is it good to
build with natural resources?).
Benefits and Barriers section: The benefits of putting together a
program that helps the Riu hotel become more sustainable are endless.
Not only will they help preserve the environment for generations to come
but they will save themselves a lot of money in the long run.
The barriers of setting of a program like this are that more money may
have to be put up in advance to make these changes. Yet, in the long run
this money will come back to them many times over. There are no barriers
to the environment within this plan because becoming more sustainable as
a hotel will only benefit the environment. Socially becoming more
sustainable may mean giving up some extras(state extras, confusing, it
seems like were giving them the option, encouraging them to reuse
towels, but dont force it, they dont have to, (just promoting) that
some guests might prefer, yet in the long run many people will learn to
appreciate this and embrace what is being done for the environment.
(in timeframe mention how long it would take to adopt)
-things that may be important to consider

efforst to reduce garbage and use of resources, reuse items, energy and water, recycle
rubbish and various resources and buy recycled products
-green restaurant with green marketing
-elimination of styrofaom food and beverage containers

(training will increase productivity, reduce turnover and layoffs, allow for less
supervison, increase morale, sense of worth, dignity, well being
-solar oven
-guests are asked to separate food scraps for composting when clearing plates
adopt a plant programme
-guest can monitor their own energy and water consumption via computer
Reuse-old newspaper is the only protective wrapping used in the shop
-water from the sweage treatment plnat is used for garden irrigation
guests are given a 25% discount on every refill of beer it they reuse the same glass
Recycling- purchase of a glass crusher is planned to recycle glass into cement
-food and grass clippings used for compost in the organic garden (More on
composting!!..she said in interview)
--used paper is recycled intoscribbling pads and photocopying is double sided
Buying recycled: recycled note paper and paper towels are for sale in the shop
-paper towls and napkins are made from recycled paper
-new building materials from recycled glass, wood, rubber tires, etc.
-use only organic and fragrance-free facial bath and laundry soaps as well as cleaning
products
-linens and bedding of natural fibres
-solar power for wter and space heating
-organic and locally produced ingredients (green menu)
-green weddings and parties
-restaurants stocked with organically grown wines
Law:
Current practices in functional management:
Examination of the tourism sector as a whole:
-a lot is written on paper, but not necessarily followed i.e. dumping of sewage at
certain resorts
Current Best practices of Sustainability in hotels:
-ecolabelling

-environmental management systems-such as green globe 21 or other mentioned in

class
Analysis of how operations can be modified to move towards sustainability:
-monitor the overall impact of regulation on the sector, co-ordinating the regulatory
departments and promoting the importance of the sector
continuous process and continuous improvement
-not only meet compliance but go above and beyond standards of best country and
implement equal standards in all locations
-respond to the communities needs
ecological product controls and environmental impact assessments
-(voluntary assessing the impact on the environment)-more potential to influence change
than regulation
-safety
- carrying out environmental checks in contractual hotels
local authorities are usually responsible for enforcing health and safety legislation in
hotels and restaurants-has their involvement?
working time of employees
-level of protection and entitlements available to workers
-user-friendly guidance on the Regulations for employers and workers
-assess awareness of employment rights legislation and how it affects business
operations. Changes will be considered in the light of these studies
- efficient supply of good quality food are achieved through better and more effective
regulation.
Intermediaries : enforcers and other intermediaries to ensure that clear, simple guidance is
provided on the most relevant regulatory requirements for different types of hotels and
restaurants
Analysis of benefits and barriers (economic, environmental and social):
Benefits:will improve staff morale, environmental issues, and the overall appeal of
the hotel
Barriers: nobody likes being told what to do
-too difficult to regulate the movement
Recommendation for adoption to sustainable practices (including a timeframe):
-varies between countries for the context of change in specific to each destination.

regulatory levers and incentives

publish their assessments together with the ' analysis of the impact on small businesses;
and
- To ensure that the consultation document and easily accessible on our website.
These changes will ensure that all regulations are widely available to both business and
the general public,
doing a study of the effectiveness of the regulatory impact appraisal system and guidance
materials.
look at the notification process for new regulations and the time between announcement
and implementation of new regulations to see if further changes are required.
control the costs of new regulations and to work with Departments to improve and
modernise the whole policy development process.
consultation with stakeholders inform the early development of proposed regulations.

democratic accountability.

-involving stakeholders in its development

- The Government has commissioned research to produce a best practice guide on the
preparation of development plans and the efficient management of the process of plan
preparation by local authorities. This should help those local authorities with a poor track
record in plan making to learn from those authorities who have managed to prepare plans
quickly and efficiently. The Government is also looking at the possibilities for more use
being made of opportunities for planning at the neighbourhood level (for example,

through the definition of Action Areas or the use of supplementary planning guidance)
which can offer opportunities for more direct involvement by businesses in the process of
planning.
The Government will continue to monitor the adoption of local plans and the time taken
to prepare them. It will be sometime before a sufficient number of plans has been taken
forward under the new procedures to allow an objective view on whether the new
procedures have speeded up the plan preparation process. The Government will also look
at possible options for further improvements to the current development plans system.
-

The research will address matters such as impact on local amenity and the
environment, for example in terms of litter, noise and relationships with other land
uses in the area.

sets goals rather than prescribing detailed requirements; -, to maintain a strategic

overview of fire safety matters.

document suggested a new general duty of fire safety care on employers and owners and
occupiers of almost all premises (except single private dwellings) to provide and maintain
adequate fire precautions.

a preliminary risk assessment as part of the design process which could be used as part of
the Building Regulations submission and which would assist the fire authority in
providing its advice.
-guidance where necessary

-There is no reason why the enhanced role for building control authorities should not be
exercised by approved inspectors.

.
including representatives from Government, the regulators, stakeholders and
professionals.

Conclusion:
In conclusion?
-not only provide ecotouris with an environmental option but also stands up as an
example for toehr tour operatior and hotels to follow
-benchmark for further dev.

Systematic actions: education, hotel management procedures, ecolabelling,

environmental quality controls, ecological product controls and environmental impact
assessments,
to consider the gorwing trends and demands in tourism
Such as learning and enrichment travel, concern for the environemtn, healh-conscious
society, customeized and personalize vactions , increasing desire for convenience and
speed and authentic experiences.

References
Berman, P.D. (1997). Small Business and Entrepreneurship. Scarborough, ON: Prentice
Hall Canada Inc.
This book offers ideas and suggestions for a small business on how to market, implement,
price and offer services. This is applicable to our consultation project because we are all

relatively new to this industry and therefore want secondary data on how to plan for our
services rendered.

Fairmont Hotels and Resorts (2006). Retreived October 8, 2006 from www.fairmont.com.
Fairmont is one of the leading hotels and resorts and have many sustainable practise that
are undertaken within their company and can act as an inspirational model and offer ideas
to us based on their tried and true successful practises, that are the best within the
industry.

Fennell, D.A. (2002). Ecotourism Programme Planning. New York, NY: CABI
Publishing.
This book gives detail information on all aspects of writing business plans, with the
additional of ecotourism perspectives. Therefore clarification on several topics are
explained in detail, as well as eco-tourism practices that could be applied in our
consultation project.

Global Codes of Ethics for Tourism. (1999 last update not given). World Tourism
Organization. Retrieved October 14th from: http://www.gdrc.org/uem/ecotour/principles.html.
This website offers the Global Codes of Ethics for Tourism. It provides in-depth
explanations as to how stakeholders in tourism development and tourists themselves can
act in a way which is ethically responsible. This website is very helpful for the Ethics

section of the functional management process, as it provides information which can be

related to improving Rius corporate sustainability.

Henderson, S.J. (2004). Product inventors and creativity: The finer dimensions of
enjoyment. Creativity Research Journal, 16 (2 & 3), 293-312.
This article offers thinking outside of the box situations and how to generate ideas, which
is important when competing with other companies, and how to generate innovative ideas
when coming up with new practices, ideas and philosophies for our consultation project.

Nextag (1999-2006). Retreived October 7, 2006 from http://www.nextag.com/riuhotel/search-html.

This website helps compare prices, offers, with other hotels, and gives the main features
of the Riu hotels and resorts. This helps us with the financial aspects of our consultation
project.

Philips, R.A. (2000). The Environment as a stakeholder? A Fairness Based Approach.

Journal of Business Ethics 23, 185-197.

This article demonstates the debate of how the environment should hold stakeholder staus
through a fairness based approach. This article will be a good contribution to our project
when considering the environmental component of our work.

Riu Hotels and Resorts (2006). Retrieved October 7, 2006 from www.riu.com.

This is the corporations main website, which helps us to gather and analyze information
on the operations, marketing, human resources, locations, approaches and many other
aspects of the their business, and help turn this practices into better sustainable usages.

Rushton, K. (2002). Business Ethics: A Sustainable Approach. Business Ethics a

European Review, 11(2), 137-139.
This article provides an analysis of the terms ethics and corporate social responsibility.
It illustrates how the two terms are connected in a business sense, and shows how
companies can prosper in a sustainable and ethical way. This article is very useful for the
Ethics section of the functional management processes.

UNCTAD (August 4th, 2005). United Nations Conference on Trade and Development.
Retrieved on October 14th, 2006 from:
http://www.unctadxi.org/templates/Startpage____1208.aspx.
This website is from the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development. It
provides information on E-Tourism, as well as Information and Communication
Technology tools which are now being used in todays tourism industry. This website is
very useful for the Information and Communication